8.14.2009

Bad Day?

My college room mate and her daughter are in town for a few days visiting. Yesterday I had a half day and we planned to go out and explore the area around Lancaster (Amish country).

For some reason my kids were just off and driving me nuts. I hate it when they don't listen or can't stop whining. The biggest problem yesterday was Palmer. My sweet little boy is usually very easy going and happy the majority of the time. Yesterday, however he was a total nightmare.

Nothing made him happy and he didn't know why. It was hard to see him get so upset so easily. As a mom it's not always easy to remind yourself as your two year old is crying/whining/throwing himself on the floor that this is not normal behavior. It could be that he is catching a cold, cutting a tooth, or is just having a bad day.

We all have them. We are not sick and nothing is really "wrong" but we are just off. Either we didn't sleep that well the night before or we are just in a bad mood. I think sometimes when it comes to kids we forget that they are human too. They can't be your perfect angels all the time. Sometimes they are going to be bratty, whiny, and have short fuses. So what do you do when your kid is having one of those days? I guess for me it is a personal effort to remember to "have patience" while not rewarding the bad behavior I try to just let it roll. A couple of times yesterday I had to just pull Palmer aside and just ask him "hey, what's wrong? what is going on?". The sad part is that he didn't know...or at least he didn't know how to explain it to me. To me these are critical parenting moments. When you want to yell and send your kid to timeout and you have just had it....you have to remember that you are the parent. Instead I try to give him a minute by himself or with just me to calm down. Just this moment to breath and regroup helps to diffuse a tantrum or fit and let him regroup instead of increasing his frustration. The Palmer that was freaking out yesterday is not my normal Palmer and I know that. Hopefully today will be a better day.

2 comments:

Le Courtista Project said...

I'm not a Mommy myself but I am practically a certified babysitter by now, and I know where you're comin from (except the difference between you and I is that I get paid for putting up with all their shit, and you work for free). Kids will be kids, and it's weird to think about, but they're just as human as we are. You know those mornings when we roll outta bed just to face a completely off/bad mood for no apparent reason, and yet we can't seem to shake it as hard as we try? They have 'em too, or so I'm convinced.

Just gotta roll with the punches sometimes, no matter how whiny/bratty/rough those punches can be. Hang in there girl and when the hard days hit, just try to remember how sweet and lovely they are on their/your good days.

Anonymous said...

I pray that one day I will have the patience to be a mother. It seems like you are doing an awesome job...poor Palmer -- I feel like that sometimes, too -- just in a funk and don't know why. Hope he is feeling better.

I took the plunge and put myself in as a "follower" on your blog. Really not that hard, funny how I had been avoiding doing that, especially when most of the blogs I read have that feature.

Speaking of which, I have a new blog:

http://scotchtapedprincess.wordpress.com

It's the "next chapter" in the Rose story. :)

Much love,

The Blogger Formerly Known as RosieSmrtiePants :)